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Eleanor Wilson, from Glasgow, who proposed the motion on behalf of the BMA's medical students committee, told delegates: "By providing sanitary products for free universally, not only do we sidestep the cost of means testing but also make the statement that access to sanitary products is a basic human right for all, uniting our population in a shift towards equality."

Giancarlo Bell, a medical student from Scotland and campaigner against period poverty, said: "We need to assess if we are going to be the kind of society that wants people to just bleed into socks or through their clothes, or if we are willing to ask the Tories to divert some of the Treasury money to an actual worthwhile cause."

The motion, passed on Tuesday, calls on the BMA to lobby the Government to provide sanitary products more widely for free, and to ensure all in-patients are offered them while staying in hospital.

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Ms Wilson, speaking during a debate ahead of the vote, said: "We do not ask patients to bring in toilet paper or food so why are we asking them to bring in their own sanitary products?

"Patients in hospitals should expect to have all of their basic needs met to allow a quick and dignified recovery. This is currently not happening."

Dr Shreelata Datta, a consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist, said she finds it "hugely embarrassing" when she is unable to provide sanitary protection to patients, despite products costing as little as one pence each.